Both CleanPowerSF and Hetch Hetchy Power were awarded Gold Status by The Climate Registry for measuring and reducing greenhouse gas emissions
San Francisco, CA— The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) has been certified as Climate Registered Gold status by The Climate Registry, an international non-profit organization that designs and operates voluntary and compliance greenhouse gas emissions reporting.
“As San Francisco’s clean energy utility, we are honored to be recognized by The Climate Registry for our commitment to sourcing cleaner energy for our customers and reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global climate change,” said SFPUC General Manager Harlan L. Kelly Jr. “With the U.N. Climate Change Conference convening last week to address our climate crisis, our work to reduce the City’s carbon footprint is more critical and urgent than ever.”
The award given to the SFPUC recognizes the agency’s commitment to generating and sourcing renewable energy and for publicly reporting greenhouse gas emissions data to the Carbon Footprint Registry, North America’s largest voluntary registry for greenhouse gas emissions. This data will enable the SFPUC to track its climate initiatives and greenhouse gas emission reductions credibly over time in order to meet San Francisco’s ambitious goal of achieving 100 percent renewable energy by 2030.
The SFPUC earned the coveted status for its two clean energy programs, Hetch Hetchy Power and CleanPowerSF, for reporting years 2016 and 2017. To receive this standing, the agency reported and verified emissions within a certain timeframe and generated or purchased renewable and/or carbon-free energy, among other requirements.
“Organizations that become Climate Registered are the leaders in a growing movement to address climate change by managing and reducing emissions at the subnational level,” said Amy Holm, Executive Director of The Climate Registry. “We have just over a decade to take action that will ensure we avoid the worst effects of climate change. This kind of leadership is needed now more than ever.”
CleanPowerSF is San Francisco’s renewable energy program, serving more than 376,000 residents and businesses in the City. Since its launch in 2016, CleanPowerSF’s energy procurement has effectively reduced the greenhouse gas emissions footprint of San Francisco’s electricity usage by 83 percent from 1990 levels, or the equivalent of removing about 134,000 passenger vehicles from the road for a year.
Along with CleanPowerSF, the SFPUC operates Hetch Hetchy Power, which provides 100 percent greenhouse gas free energy to public facilities, such as City Hall, San Francisco International Airport, Muni buses, schools and libraries. Combined, the SFPUC’s two clean energy programs meet 80 percent of the electricity demand in San Francisco.
About the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) is a department of the City and County of San Francisco. It delivers drinking water to 2.7 million people in the San Francisco Bay Area, collects and treats wastewater for the City and County of San Francisco, and generates clean power for municipal buildings, residents, and businesses. The SFPUC’s mission is to provide customers with high quality, efficient and reliable water, power, and sewer services in a manner that values environmental and community interests and sustains the resources entrusted to our care. Learn more at www.sfwater.org.
About The Climate Registry
The Climate Registry is a non-profit organization governed by U.S. states and Canadian provinces and territories. The Climate Registry designs and operates voluntary and compliance GHG reporting programs globally, and assists organizations in measuring, reporting and verifying (MRV) the carbon in their operations in order to manage and reduce it. TCR also builds GHG MRV capacity in sub-national and national governments, and spearheads innovative projects such as the Water-Energy Nexus Registry. Find out more at www.theclimateregistry.org and follow on Twitter @theclimatereg.